Tantramar was incorporated on January 1, 2023 via the amalgamation of the former town of Sackville and the former village of Dorchester as well as the concurrent annexation of adjacent unincorporated areas.[1]
The name Tantramar is derived from the Acadian French tintamarre, meaning 'din' or 'racket', a reference to the noisy flocks of birds which feed there in the marshes.
Geography
Tantramar is on the Isthmus of Chignecto, which connects the Nova Scotia peninsula with North America. It is on the Tantramar River, which empties into Chignecto Bay, a sub-basin of the Bay of Fundy. Tantramar is at a low elevation above sea level. Prominent ridges rise above the marshes, namely the Fort Lawrence Ridge, the Aulac Ridge, the Sackville Ridge, and the Memramcook Ridge. Tantramar is surrounded by the Tantramar Marshes, once a tidal saltmarsh. The marshes are an important stopover for migrating birds. The marsh soil consists of silts deposited by centuries of tidal flooding. Drainage is poor and there are slow-moving meandering rivers, shallow lakes, bogs, and intertidal zones.
The Sackville Memorial Hospital serves the region, as well as the Community Health Centre which houses several physicians, an optometrist, a dentist, and a pharmacy. It is one of the few that are not government-run.[2]
The Tantramar Veterans Memorial Civic Centre, a recreational facility and arena, opened in 2003.[3] The arena can seat over 750 spectators[4] and is the home rink for the Mount Allison University women's hockey team.
Another main employer today is the Correctional Service of Canada, which operates a prison complex now comprising the medium-security (once maximum-security) Dorchester Penitentiary, and the minimum-security Westmorland Institution.
Many residents commute to work in the nearby town of Amherst or the cities of Moncton and Dieppe.
A recent influx of residents is creating a new demand for Tantramar.
Tourism is centred on the historic and natural features of the area. One of Tantramar's most historic buildings houses the Keillor House Museum. The annual shorebird migration to the mud flats of nearby Johnson's Mills is celebrated by an oversize model of a semi-palmated sandpiper situated in Dorchester square.
Another tourist attraction is the conversion of the Dorchester Jail to a successful bed and breakfast where you can spend a night in a real jail cell. Opened in 2017, it’s one of the Maritimes highest rated adventure Airbnb’s listed. It’s the sight of the last double hanging in New Brunswick, where the Bannister brothers were hanged and buried at the jail.
Arts and culture
The oldest university art gallery in Canada, the Owens Art Gallery, which opened in 1895, has a permanent collection of over 4000 works.[5]
Live Bait Theatre provides theatre and other live performances like dinner theatre, comedy and live music.[6]
In 2008 the town was given a Government of Canada grant the 300th anniversary of its founding and to mark the 10th anniversary of the opening of its first museum.[7]
The Sackville Arts Wall celebrates the achievements of Tantramar artists who have made significant contributions to the fields of Literary Arts, Performing Arts, and Visual Arts, as well as Arts Builders who have supported artistic development within the community. Sackville Arts Wall inductees include Alex Colville, Charles G. D. Roberts, Pauline Spatz, Ray Legere, Arthur John Motyer, Douglas Lochhead, Ivan and Vivian Hicks, Sharon MacIntyre, Glenn Adams, K. V. Johansen, Pauline Harborne, Alex Fancy, Ian Hanomansing, Julie Doiron, Mary Connelly, Thaddeus Holownia, Ernie Sears, Delanor R. Wheaton, and Janet Hammock.[8]
Struts Gallery, is an artist-run-centre established in 1980 dedicated to presenting contemporary art to the public through artist residencies, screenings, and performances.[9]
SappyFest is an annual independent arts and music festival held in Tantramar, New Brunswick, Canada, launched in 2006. SappyFest was started by Paul Henderson, Jon Claytor, and musician Julie Doiron as an extension of Sappy Records.[10]
Landmarks
Sackville United Church, Tantramar, New Brunswick, 2014. Demolished 2015.[11]Wheaton Covered Bridge, a 50m-long covered bridge built in 1916[12] which spans the Tantramar River on the High Marsh Road.
Cranewood: a Georgian house constructed of local red sandstone in about 1836 by William Crane. It was bought by Josiah Wood in 1867, and remained in the Wood family until 1966. From 1966 to 1975 the house belonged to Dr. W.S.H. Crawford, until it was purchased by Mount Allison University for use as the official residence of the president. In 2013 the Cranewood building was converted into a bakery.[13]
The Swan Pond, also known as Lily Pond is located in Ladies' College Park on the campus of Mount Allison University. The pond was excavated in 1901 and a fountain designed by artist John Hammond was added in 1904.[14] The last pair of swans to live in the Swan Pond died in 2015.[15]
Campbell Carriage Factory: Tantramar's first museum, the Carriage Factory was operated by the Campbell family for over 100 years, closing its doors in the 1950s.
The Boultenhouse Heritage Centre, built by prolific shipbuilder Christopher Boultenhouse in 1840, built onto the front of the Bulmer House, which is believed to be Tantramar's oldest house built in 1790.[16] It houses wallpaper that is original to the house, imported from Paris, and believed to be one of only 3 or 4 examples of this type of wallpaper remaining intact in North America.
The Sackville Harness Shop was founded in 1919 and made custom hand-crafted leather items, specializing in harnesses and straw collars for draught horses. The building, an example of Gothic Revival architecture, was constructed c. 1846 and is one of the Town's earliest commercial properties.[17] The business closed in 2021.[18]
The Vogue Cinema: an Art Deco style building built in 1946.[19]
The Cube is the tallest building in Tantramar. Standing at 44-metre high, it's a featureless white cube-shaped structure which is an enormous automated blueberry and cranberry freezer.[20] Aside from its main use, beginning in 2021, it is also used as a public screen for video art and music videos during SappyFest.[21]
Fort Beauséjour – Fort Cumberland National Historic Site: In 1751 the French built Fort Beauséjour atop the Aulac Ridge to defend Acadia from British controlled Nova Scotia.[22] The fort serves as a reminder of how strategically important the Isthmus of Chignecto was to the European empires.
The Argosy is the student journal produced by students of Mount Allison University. Established in 1875, it is one of the oldest official student publications in the country.[23]
CHMA-FM/106.9, known as "The Voice of the Marshes", provides open format and specialty music shows, spoken word programs on a variety of topics as well as audio art programming.[25]
From 1944 to 2014, Tantramar was home to CKCX, the high-power shortwave transmitter site shared by Radio Canada International and the CBC northern shortwave service.
Edward Barron Chandler - Father of Confederation. His family home, Chandler House, commonly referred to as Rocklynn, was later inhabited by the Teed Family.
Douglas How (1919–2001) - journalist, magazine editor, and author.
Sir Pierre-Amand Landry (1846–1916) - Acadian lawyer, judge and political figure.
Sir Albert James Smith (1822–1883) - politician and opponent of Canadian confederation.
